Dear readers, I hope all of you are doing well. Today I came with a question for us to ponder. When will our women be out of societal control? 

I was reading the novel “The Palace of Illusion” by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni. The story is a retelling of the Mahabharata from the eyes of Panchalli, popularly known as Druphadi. Polygamy was an acceptable practice at the time of the Mahabharata. Beyond polygamy, queen Druphadi was not treated with appropriate honour either by her own family or by her husbands. The most unacceptable was the incidence of using the lady as bait in the game of dice by his righteous husband. Please do not misunderstand me as an antagonist of Indian scriptures. Mahabharata is a story that transcended the boundary of time. In reality, every ancient culture was misogynist. Indian culture stands out for recognising the need of the time and accommodating the changes.

Incidences of atrocities on women are on the pages of newspapers almost every day. It is quite plausible that thousands of such cases actually hushed up before becoming public. A sense of pessimism engulfs me some time. 

In every stage of life, women face discrimination. In many parts of the country, killing a girl foetus is a known practice. It is an undeniable fact that a girl child often faces discrimination in education, nutrition, and other opportunities. In rural areas, underage girls are often forced into marriage. Early marriage leads to underage pregnancy. Women of marginalised families have to take up menial work at very low wages; this is an absolute exploitation of labour. Many women are subject to continuous domestic violence. 

Sometime I wonder that we Indians, worshippers of Sakti, treat our women so badly. Women's safety in public places or at work is never treated as a priority.

We, the civil society, have to be concerned about women's safety and upliftment without any kind of prejudice whatsoever. All men always remember that we came from the womb of a woman. 

In my understanding, the first change should start with a change of mindset. A man shall learn to see a woman with dignity. 

All the state and central governments take up various schemes for the betterment of women. These schemes are easing the lives of countries daughters.

The civil society, media, and other stakeholders shall make a continuous effort to create mass awareness about women's safety and empowerment. Cinema, television, and other mass media shall take it as a challenge to sensitise the common public about the problems of women. A social movement is the need of the hour. 

Thanks for reading...